Attatchments
by Hawki
Summary: Oneshot: As an AI residing on the Spirit of Fire, Serina wasn't exactly in a position to form attatchments with those on Harvest. However, as the theatre of war moves to Arcadia and beyond, circumstances have a way of changing...


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A/N

_Valentine's Day had me thinking about possible pairings for various fics, among them was the concept of _Halo_'s AIs. Somewhat predictably, my first thoughts were centered on Cortana and John-117. However, not only has such a pairing been done to death, but it's generally split between being executed well, cliched or just plain disturbing. As such, I decided to use a different AI and establish a different dynamic, not to mention getting the opportunity to lambast aspects of _Halo Wars_. It's a bit too early to judge the game, but after reading certain things about its campaign and adherance to canon from those who've had access to the full game, I can't say I'm filled with confidence._

_Note on this though, in that minor spoilers are in this oneshot, specifically from the cinematic trailer that was seemingly released with Ensemble's approval and subsequently withdrawn from most of the internet. Nothing too groundbreaking and I've made quite a few shots in the dark as to the plot, but still, thought it best to give a warning._

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**Attatchments**

Five years. Five long years...

That's how long it took us to get Harvest back, how long it took for rationality to be restored to a ruined world. Ironic, that _irrationality _would soon follow.

It began normally. In a battle. Something that for humanity's outermost colony had become pretty much standard. Oh sure, the Cyclops was being field tested and the Gremlins deployed _en masse_, but overall, it was what we'd all come to expect. What I didn't expect however, was to receive a personal transmission just after it had concluded:

_The upgraded neural implant is causing some minor feedback on the comm link. Reaction times have improved significantly though; probably just need a little tweak. Can you check it out next time I get an "oil change?"_

I was surprised. Not only was a Spartan II contacting me personally, but had been equipped with a neural implant, something that I thought wasn't set to happen for at least another two decades at least. Regardless, I offered to do a sub-routine at his next diagnostic, an offer that I followed up on. Considering Professor Anders' complaints about me "sending that armour clad freak" her way, I can only suppose that Keiichi-047 didn't follow my advice about asking the doctor nicely for a tune up.

Truth be told, I wasn't that surprised.

That was the start of it really, a realization that circumstances no longer allowed me to play the role of Deus Ex Machina, of being some background entity on the _Spirit of Fire_. People knew about me and as such, I was obliged to play a more active role, starting with Alpha Base. Some friendly little head in the corner of Forge's HUD...or something. I talked, they listened. The circumstances were lost on me. Regardless, for better or worse, I was becoming connected. And when I jacked into Keiichi's implant on Arcadia, the experience became even more intimate.

Linking with the mind of a human being is...interesting. A bit chaotic, but interesting nonetheless. You _feel _the person you're linked with. You know their personality, how they think, why they think that way. It's quite complex, even with all the brainwashing of Omega's youth, along with the rest of the Spartan IIs. Brainwashing that prompted their core thought to be VICTORY (yes, in capital letters) and how to achieve it. And with everything from Spartan Lasers to jumping through the air to hijack Banshees, they certainly knew how to achieve it.

Forge was different. He didn't have a neural interface I could link with, but being an 'on-site' person, I was forced to liaison with him extensively. Granted, "forced" may be too harsh a word. I had my orders, but still found the link endearing. He was far more prone to showing his emotions than his super soldier counterparts. He showed himself to be both compassionate and professional-a rare combination. Oh, and insubordinate too. I couldn't help but appreciate that.

Was this new fondness for my comrades love? Hardly. I may be an AI and therefore incapable of feeling the emotion, Rampancy aside of course, but what was feeling was not nearly powerful enough. Besides, even if I did have such feelings, circumstances of my existence would put a buffer on such thoughts from the outset. And Forge and Anders had certainly been behaving differently around each other by the time we reached the Shield World. Oh sure, he was perfectly willing to leave her on the artificial planet originally, but was equally willing to go back down and fight tooth and nail against the Arbiter? A proverbial knight in shining armour? Certainly using the alien's own energy sword against it lends credence to the theory, just as much that their relationship could have taken on another word beginning with 'L' that wasn't "loathing."

Did I envy them? Perhaps. But with us all parting ways after the incident, from a series of events that seemed strung together by some invisible thread rather than a meaningful campaign, I had little time to dwell on it. And maybe that's for the best. After all, if an AI were to develop strong feelings for his or her human companions, or perhaps just a single one...

...well, a lot of luck would be required at least.


End file.
